Windows 8 ''not awesome'' for Blizzard

Another high-profile games industry executive has given Windows 8 the big ol' thumbs down. Commenting on Gabe Newell's recent interview with VentureBeat, Blizzard's Rob Pardo chimed in on Twitter a few days ago:

nice interview with Gabe Newell - "I think Windows 8 is a catastrophe for everyone in the PC space* - not awesome for Blizzard either

Pardo is Blizzard's Executive Vice President of Game Design. He's been credited as a designer for Diablo III and lead designer for World of Warcraft and its first two expansions. Six years ago, Time Magazine included him in its list of the world's 100 most influential people.

In short, I'd wager his opinion carries some weight around the industry.

As we reported last week, Newell thinks the arrival of Windows 8 will cause some top-tier PC makers to exit the market. He also believes margins will be "destroyed for a bunch of people." Newell doesn't plan to shy away from the operating system, but he hopes to draw gamers and enthusiasts to Linux—hence Valve's recent efforts to port its Steam digital distribution and social gaming service to Ubuntu. (Thanks to Kotaku for the heads up.)